Rebekah Bichsel’s world suddenly turned upside down when she received a cancer diagnosis, but she and her husband Brad held onto their faith and trusted God for healing.
The diagnosis
As worship leaders in Phoenix Arizona, Rebekah and Brad both believe in God’s good, pleasing, and perfect will for their lives. That’s why when Rebekah was told she had cancer wrapped around her kidney, her and her husband turned to God for help. However, when they were told it was inoperable, their faith was really tested.
“I didn’t know if we were gonna be planning goodbyes or if I was gonna start a heavy treatment,” Rebekah said.
“That first drive home, that was where I probably dealt with that the strongest. What does this mean? What does this look like? Is this like ‘how long do we’ have?” Brad said.
A very specific prayer
In the middle of their uncertainties, the couple decided to just hold on to their faith and keep praying for healing. Rebekah would put her hand on her belly every day, and she would specifically ask God to make the tumor shrivel and fall off her body.
It was a very tough time for them, especially for Rebekah who wanted to build up her faith but at the same time rest and trust in God’s goodness and sovereignty even if they didn’t get a miracle. Eventually, further lab results confirmed that she had a rare cancer called liposarcoma and her prognosis was not good as the 10-lb tumor would sooner or later cause organ failure and lead to death.
With such despairing news, the Bichsels decided to seek a second opinion. The first report said that the tumor was inoperable, but the doctor came in the next morning and said it was operable. They went to MD Anderson in Houston to verify again that it was operable, finding out that these were the only people capable of doing the surgery.
A leap of faith
There were so many overwhelming decisions to make but the couple, who had just released a new album at that time, stayed still and praised God through their concert tours. They would worship with other people and though they were the ones onstage, they too were encouraged by the faith of others who have stories way worse than Rebekah’s.
Then they were met with another challenge while preparing for surgery in Houston. Their insurance denied their claim to go to MD Anderson. They were scared, but they once again battled their struggle with prayers. Then out of nowhere, the insurance company changed their decision and approved to cover the surgery and even included the travel expense.
The answered prayer
The day of Rebekah’s surgery finally came. They were informed that it would last for about 6 hours, but just two and a half hours later, the surgeon came out and told the family that they were all done and the tumor practically fell out of her body. When Rebekah heard what the doctor said, she knew it was a miracle from God because the surgeon had used the words to the exact prayer that she had been praying.
Today, Rebekah is basking in the healing that God provided. She continues to be cancer-free, and she praises God for answering her prayers. He was faithful even during the times that Rebekah was not.
